Department for Transport

High Speed 2 Line: Colne Valley

Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the levels of chromium-6 found at HS2 sites across the Colne Valley; and whether these are related to cement used in construction works.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: HS2 Ltd’s contractor Align JV collects water samples from groundwater, surface water and water associated with construction activities along the route of the Colne Valley Viaduct. The water samples are analysed for a number of substances, including chromium VI, and the data is assessed against environmental quality standards and drinking water standards. The data is then provided to the Environment Agency and Affinity Water on a monthly basis. All the cement used in the construction of the Colne Valley Viaduct meets EU limits for chromium VI content. Chromium VI has been identified in some waters from the cement used in construction. Such water is collected and either treated at the Align water treatment plant at their South Portal site or at off-site commercial facilities.

High Speed 2 Line: Leeds

Lord Berkeley: To ask His Majesty's Government what is the latest business case for extending HS2 to Leeds.

Lord Berkeley: To ask His Majesty's Government whether plans for extending HS2 to Leeds will involve HS2 and traditional passenger trains calling at the same station platforms; and if so, (1) how the differences in planned station platform heights for different trains will be accommodated, and (2) what cost benefit analysis they have made of making provisions for differing station platform heights for different types of trains.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: The IRP included £100 million for work to look at the most effective way to run HS2 trains to Leeds, including understanding the optimal solution for capacity at Leeds station, and starting work on the West Yorkshire Mass Transit System. We intend to publish the terms of reference for the HS2 to Leeds Study soon, which will provide more information on the options under consideration.

Ministry of Justice

Data Protection

Lord Clement-Jones: To ask His Majesty's Government when the past minutes of the (shadow) Senior Data Governance Panel will be published.

Lord Bellamy: Under its Terms of Reference, a summary of the proceedings of the Senior Data Governance Panel will be published after each meeting.The Panel’s Secretariat intend to issue during Spring 2023 a public summary of all previous meetings, which took place over the 24 months when the Panel was not yet formalised, alongside the public summary of the first formalised Panel meeting.

Courts: Remote Hearings

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to increase the use of online court sittings.

Lord Bellamy: Whether a hearing is held remotely or not is a judicial decision. HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) supports the judiciary to conduct hearings in their preferred method, be that wholly remote, wholly in person or a combination of remote and physically present participants, enabling justice that is unrestricted by physical location. However, it is ultimately a judicial decision. We are facilitating this through continuing investment in audio and video technology to ensure our courtrooms and tribunal buildings are digitally enabled.Remote hearings provide additional capacity to ensure cases can be heard quickly, while freeing up space for cases that must be heard in person. Having increased in use during the pandemic, remote hearings are continuing to be used to support court and tribunal recovery.

Prisoners: Police Custody

Lord Bradley: To ask His Majesty's Government how many prisoners were held in police cells under Operation Safeguard in each week since 1 December 2022.

Lord Bellamy: As of 11th January, no prisoners have been housed in police cells as part of Operation Safeguard since it was activated on 30th November 2022.Police forces across the country use police cells occasionally in normal practice to house prisoners overnight, for example due to late sitting courts.

Department of Health and Social Care

Care Homes: Closures

Baroness Campbell of Surbiton: To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to prevent (1) the handback of contacts for, and (2) closures of, care homes providers, which put those receiving care at risk of eviction.

Lord Markham: The commissioning of care and support services is a matter for local authorities, who are best placed to understand and plan for the care needs of their local populations. These authorities are used to manage entry and exit of care providers in the market and should have appropriate plans in place to minimise any disruption of services. They are in the best position to find a solution with the minimum possible disruption, while meeting people’s needs and choices. The Care Act 2014 places a temporary duty on local authorities to ensure that people continue to receive the services they need if their adult social care provider is no longer able to carry on delivering services.

Integrated Care Boards

Lord Bradley: To ask His Majesty's Government what are the namesof the ordinary members on each Integrated Care Board; and for each member, what (1) knowledge, and (2) experience, they have relating to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of mental illness.

Lord Markham: Integrated care boards (ICBs) are required to publish the list of ICB board members including ordinary members in accordance with the Health and Care Act 2022. ICBs have made the information publicly available on its websites regarding board members including expertise and knowledge. Details of ICB board membership is not held by Government in a central record.

Prisoners: Females

Lord Blencathra: To ask His Majesty's Government how many women in prison were registered as having disabilities in each of the last five years; and of those, how many had (1) physical, and (2) learning, disabilities.

Lord Markham: The information requested is not currently held centrally as it has not yet been validated.

Nirsevimab

Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made ofthe monoclonal antibody Nirsevimab, which was approved by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency in November 2022; and when it will be made available to patients on the NHS.

Lord Markham: The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) is actively reviewing new and emerging products to provide immunisation against Respiratory Syncytial Virus, including the monoclonal antibody Nirsevimab. Once the JCVI concludes their review of evidence and modelling, the Government will consider their recommendations and whether to implement changes to the immunisation products offered by the National Health Service in due course.

Doctors: Migrant Workers

Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts: To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they give to doctor-patient ratios which are significantly below those in UK when recruiting international medical graduates from low-income countries outside the EU and EEA.

Lord Markham: International recruitment of medical graduates is guided by the ‘Code of practice for the international recruitment of health and social care personnel in England’, available in an online-only format. The code aligns with the latest advice from the World Health Organisation, preventing active recruitment from countries with the most pressing health and social care workforce challenges, including those with low healthcare worker density.

Integrated Care Boards: Pay

Lord Scriven: To ask His Majesty's Government what is the total salary bill for Chief Executives of Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) in England for the financial year 2022–23.

Lord Markham: The 2022/23 financial year is ongoing. Integrated care board chief executive salary levels will feature in the annual reports of those boards.

NHS: Drugs

Lord Blencathra: To ask His Majesty's Government which Ministerhas direct responsibility for the delivery of homecare medicines services.

Lord Markham: The Minister of State for Health and Secondary Care (Will Quince MP) has ministerial responsibility for the Homecare Medicine Delivery Service.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Environment Protection

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle: To ask His Majesty's Government, further to their commitment to the 30by30 target to protect at least 30 per cent of land and ocean by 2030, what steps they will take to increase the proportion of protected (1) land in England from 3.22 per cent, and (2) waters in England from 8 per cent.

Lord Benyon: The UK Government is committed to protecting 30% of land and sea in the UK by 2030 (30by30). We consulted on our approach to 30by30 in the Nature Recovery Green Paper and will respond in due course.The 30by30 target is a global target. Nearly 8.3% of the global ocean is now protected. Achieving a global 30by30 target will require an international effort, from all countries and sectors. The UK is leading the way. We have established a comprehensive network of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) covering 40% of English waters, and we are now focusing on making sure they are properly protected. Nearly 60% of our 178 English MPAs are already protected from damaging fishing activity, including byelaws last year in the first four offshore sites, which ban bottom towed gear over sensitive habitats. We are aiming to have all MPAs in English waters protected from damaging fishing activity by 2024.

Tuna

Baroness Kennedy of Cradley: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of bluefin tuna in the waters around the UK.

Lord Benyon: Bluefin tuna have been sighted increasingly in UK waters since 2014. That increased abundance may be due to both oceanographic and ecosystem changes, but also the efforts put into stock recovery. The UK has conducted two tagging programmes of bluefin tuna one in English waters called CHART and the other, Thunnus UK which operates in the waters of the British Isles. Further information on those projects is available from:· CatcH And Release Tag (CHART) Scientific Data Collection Programme for Atlantic Bluefin Tuna (BFT) - Cefas (Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science)· Home | thunnusukSimilar schemes have been undertaken by the devolved administrations in Welsh, Scottish and Northern Irish waters.

Milk

The Lord Bishop of Exeter: To ask His Majesty's Government whatsupport they are providing to British farmers for the development of alternatives to dairy milk products, such as oat milk.

Lord Benyon: We will always support British farming. We are introducing schemes and policies that enable farmers to have resilient businesses, produce the food our nation needs, enhance animal health and welfare and also to protect and enhance the natural environment. For example, the Farming Innovation Programme will support the pull-through of R&D to deliver farmer-led solutions to productivity challenges. It will also address longer term strategic challenges such as producing nutritious food more efficiently and sustainably, whilst helping the sector to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to achieve Net Zero goals. Going forward, farmers will be able to pick and choose from a range of grants and ongoing payments to find a package that works for them. We will work with all farm types, regardless of size, location, ownership or the systems they use, to ensure that that they are able to access our funding and support in a way that works for them.

Fisheries

Baroness Kennedy of Cradley: To ask His Majesty's Government what is their latest assessment of the health of the fishing industry in England.

Lord Benyon: Data from the Seafish annual fleet economic survey shows that in 2021 there were 2,017 fishing vessels in England. This figure is stable year-on-year but represents a 10% decrease on pre-Covid levels (2015-2019 average). The top three species landed, by value, by these vessels were crab, lobster and mackerel with an average Gross Value Added (GVA) of £66,000 per vessel in 2021 (2021 prices). Average GVA contributions per vessel in 2021 differ between vessels which are under 10m (£20,000) and over 10m (£237,000). Around 77% of the English fishing fleet are under 10m. The average GVA per English vessel was stable year-on-year but saw a 12% real terms reduction compared to pre-Covid levels. This decline was driven by a 19% real terms reduction in average GVA per vessel for the English over 10m fleet, while the under 10m fleet experienced an 7% increase. In 2021, there were 2,683 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) crew members on English fishing vessels. Like the number of vessels in the English fleet, this figure is stable year-on-year but represents a 13% decline on pre-Covid levels. This decline is more significant in the under 10m fleet than the over 10m fleet who saw a reduction in FTE crew members of 32% and 6% respectively.

Pesticides

The Lord Bishop of Exeter: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the development ofbio-pesticides in England.

Lord Benyon: The government recognises the importance of biopesticides in supporting sustainable pest management now and in the future. This is reflected in the growth of the market, with the number of biopesticide active substances approved for use in the UK increasing from 2 in 1997 to 44 in 2020.Officials are engaging with biopesticides stakeholders in research and industry to better understand the barriers to biopesticide development and uptake in the UK. Feedback from these engagements will help inform future policy in this area.

Pesticides: Industry

The Lord Bishop of Exeter: To ask His Majesty's Government what support they are providing to the British bio-pesticide industry.

Lord Benyon: The Government is committed to supporting farmers and growers to control pests sustainably. This will require innovation, including the development of biopesticides, which often have a lower risk profile than conventional chemical pesticides Manufacturers seeking authorisation of new biopesticide active substances benefit from tailored advice and reduced fees from the Health and Safety Executive through the Biopesticides Scheme.

Crops: Waste

Lord Shipley: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the World Wildlife Fund’s estimate that around seven billion meals' worth of food are disposed of as waste each year by UK farmers who cannot recruit enough workers to pick crops.

Lord Benyon: The recent estimate of 3.3 million tonnes in WWF's Hidden Waste Report is consistent with the range of estimates the Defra funded Waste and Resource Action Programme (WRAP) have reported previously. WWF have reported that 2.9 million tonnes of edible food goes to waste on farms each year, which would equate to 6.9 billion meals if it is assumed that a 'meal' equates to 420g. In this context 'edible food' is used as a technical term to distinguish the proportion of any item of food which was intended for human consumption as distinct from the 'associated inedible parts' (e.g. shells, bones). It does not mean that the 2.9 million tonnes of waste were fit and ready for human consumption i.e. not requiring further processing. At a national scale, there is insufficient data to understand how much of the food wasted on farm was fit for consumption when it was wasted. The WWF reported waste on farm is not caused solely by a lack of labour, this is the total estimated amount of edible food waste on farm. There are many causes of food waste on farm including the weather, fluctuations in supply and demand and failure to meet quality specifications This year the NFU have reported the results of a members' survey which suggests that 40% of UK farms experienced crop waste due to labour shortages. Other than this, the government is not aware of any quantified data linking volumes of waste to specific causes. More can be done to reduce food waste in the primary production stage. Conversations with industry have suggested that a potentially significant cause of food waste on farm are unfair business practices at the point of first sale, where unreasonably late cancellations or late specification changes, among others, can lead to produce being left unharvested or rotting in the field. We have taken powers to clamp down on these kinds of unfair contractual practices through the 'fair dealings' powers contained in the Agriculture Act 2020 and intend to work with stakeholders to explore how these powers could be exercised to address such concerns. Defra is aware of the impact that labour shortages are having in the horticulture sector and we continue to work closely with industry to monitor the situation and to help our world-leading farmers and growers access the labour they need. To inform future decisions on labour across the sector, Defra recently launched an independent review into labour shortages in the food supply chain, it will report in spring 2023. The Seasonal Worker visa route was specifically designed to support the UK horticulture sector where growers typically require higher volumes of labour, for relatively short-term periods of time, in line with seasonal production peaks. On Friday 16 December, the government announced that an allocation of 45,000 visas will be made available to businesses in the horticulture sector to recruit foreign workers for up to six months to work in both the edible and ornamental sectors. This is an uplift of 15,000 visas compared to the allocation at the start of 2022. A further 10,000 visas will be available should there be demand and contingent on sponsors and growers continuing to improve worker welfare standards. This announcement will provide clarity to businesses, who are seeking to plan for 2023 harvests.

Eggs

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to protect UK egg producers from being undercut by imported eggs owing to higher feed and energy costs in the UK.

Lord Benyon: Defra is carefully monitoring levels of imports through the UK Agriculture Market Monitoring Group, which monitors UK agricultural markets including price, supply, inputs, trade, and recent developments. Domestic production of eggs provides around 85% to 90% of home use and last year accounted for 92% of eggs used domestically Despite the recent tightening of the egg market which is mainly the result of the war in Ukraine and a global increase in input costs for feed and energy, the supply chain is robust and we believe there remains sufficient supplies of eggs to meet consumer demand. We are not currently seeing any dramatic increases in the import of eggs. Increases in the price of eggs can also be seen impacting countries across the European Union. The UK egg industry operates in an open market and the value of egg commodities, including the farm gate egg price, is established by those in the supply chain including farmers, processors, wholesalers, retailers, and consumers. We are working closely with all stakeholders within the supply chain on how they might reduce short-term disruption to consumers. The Minister for Food and Farming recently hosted an egg industry roundtable with representatives from across the UK egg supply chain, to consider the challenges currently facing the industry.

Compost: Plastics

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle: To ask His Majesty's Government further to the Written Answer by Lord Benyon on 23 November (HL3266), howthey monitor whether collections of "compostable" plastics by local authorities, and commercial providers, are transferred to facilities that have adequate conditions to ensure their complete decomposition.

Lord Benyon: The Government currently does not monitor this.Biodegradable and compostable plastics are not included as a separate recyclable waste stream in the Environment Act 2021 and we do not propose to include these materials in any of the other recyclable waste streams.

Food Supply

Baroness Kennedy of Cradley: To ask His Majesty's Government what is their latest assessment of food security in the England.

Lord Benyon: The UK has a highly resilient food supply chain. Our high degree of food security is built on supply from diverse sources; strong domestic production as well as imports through stable trade routes. We produce 61% of all the food we need, and 74% of food which we can grow or rear in the UK for all or part of the year, and these figures have changed little over the last 20 years. The first UK Food Security Report was published in December 2021. It considers the UK's food supply sources overall, summarises existing information and understanding, and serves as an evidence base for future policy work. The Government has made a commitment to produce an assessment of our food security at least once every three years.Our food import dependency on the Eastern Europe region is very low, and we have strong domestic production of many of the products we do import. We do not expect any significant direct impact on overall UK food supply as a result of the conflict in Ukraine. We speak regularly with food industry figures, who remain confident in the food supply chain. The capability, levers, and expertise to respond to disruption lie with industry. Government's role is to support and enable an industry-led response. Defra has a collaborative relationship with industry which allows us to effectively respond to disruption, should it occur. This was successfully demonstrated in response to unprecedented disruption to both supply and demand throughout COVID-19.We continue to keep the market situation under review through the UK Agriculture Market Monitoring Group, which monitors UK agricultural markets including price, supply, inputs, trade and recent developments. We have also increased our engagement with industry to supplement our analysis with real time intelligence.Agricultural commodity prices are closely correlated to energy costs since gas is used to manufacture fertiliser and fuel energy is needed throughout the food chain. Energy prices were rising following the pandemic and the invasion of Ukraine, a key global exporter of agricultural products, has caused additional turbulence in international commodity markets, for example the global prices of wheat, maize and vegetable oil have all increased since the start of the war.The UK is working with G7 and other partners in multilateral fora such as the WTO, to monitor and address global food security issues, focusing on the ongoing benefits of open markets, and working together to ensure that sufficient, safe, affordable and nutritious food continues to be available and accessible to all.

Dairy Farming: Exports

Baroness Kennedy of Cradley: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the barriers to the growth of dairy exports to the EU.

Lord Benyon: The Government is committed to supporting the dairy sector capitalise on strong demand for British products across the world, drawing on our reputation for quality and high standards of production, welfare and food safety.We are focused on enabling British dairy exporters to access as many international markets as possible. In addition to removing trade barriers through negotiation of new Free Trade Agreements, we are boosting our technical expertise in key markets through expansion of our network of dedicated agri-food attachés to 10 posts across the globe. These roles resolve market access barriers, support export growth and provide market insight to enable British companies to target markets with the highest potential. There is strong export potential for dairy products and a growing international reputation, especially for cheese. Our attaches will work with dairy companies to build our market share further and generate further awareness and demand.As well as maximising market access the Government is also working with the sector to build capability and competitiveness in international markets. The new UK-wide Food and Drink Exports Council, which will be launched early next year, brings together industry and governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to boost exports from all parts of the UK and build export capability in the sector, especially in SMEs. The Department for International Trade provide a broad range of export support including the Export Support Service (ESS), Export Academy and the online great.gov platform to help companies begin or progress their export journey, including advice on entering particular markets and opportunities to showcase products to international buyers.

Sustainable Farming Incentive

Baroness Redfern: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the business and financial challenges, and (2) the barriers to entry to the Sustainable Farming Incentive scheme, faced by tenant farmers; and what steps they intend to take in response.

Lord Benyon: Defra are aware of the challenges some tenant farmers face when seeking to enter our schemes, such as not having sufficient duration of management control to enter long scheme agreements, being limited by the terms of their tenancy agreement as to what actions they can carry out on the land and struggling to obtain their landlord's consent to enter such schemes.We are aiming to remove barriers to tenants entering these schemes where possible and have already done so in the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI). Tenants can enter SFI without their landlord's explicit consent and tenants with annually renewing tenancy agreements can enter if they expect to have management control for the duration of their 3-year agreement. Furthermore, if a tenant unexpectedly loses management control of the land, such as when the landlord serves them a notice to quit, we do not require the tenant to pay a penalty to Defra for ending their SFI agreement early.The recently published Rock Review led by Baroness Rock acknowledges that our policy on agreement length and no penalty exits when there is an unexpected loss of management control have made the scheme more open to tenant farmers. We are currently considering the Rock Review's recommendation that Defra must continue to design the future SFI standards so that they are open to tenant farmers and will formally respond to this recommendation in due course.

Wetlands: Cambridgeshire

Baroness Kennedy of Cradley: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the healthof the remaining natural fenland in England, and (2) the prospects for the future.

Lord Benyon: The most recent assessment of the health of natural fenland habitats in England was made in 2019 as part of UK reporting on the implementation of the EU Habitats Directive. Under the Directive member states are required to achieve Favourable Conservation Status - defined by range, extent, structure and function - for listed habitats of high conservation significance.The results in Table 1 below show the United Kingdom's status, which is based on aggregation of data from the four countries.Table 1Fen typeConservation Status and TrendFuture prospectsKey areas in EnglandTransition mire and quaking bogsBad - stableBadWest Midlands, Cumbria, New ForestTall base-rich fens with saw sedgeBad - improvingBadEast Anglia - Broads, FensPetrifying springs with tufa formationBad - deterioratingBadNorth Pennines, Cotswolds, Yorkshire DalesAlkaline FensBad - stableBadNorfolk, Oxfordshire, North Yorkshire, CumbriaThe future prospects of fens are inextricably linked to health of the wider water environment, in particular the restoration of more natural hydrological conditions in the sites and their catchments. Our environmental land management schemes will contribute to the health of fens, by improving water quality, air quality and biodiversity. The Nature for Climate Peatland Grant Scheme, aims to restore 35,000 hectares of peatland, including fens, by 2025. We have launched the Sustainable Farming Incentive, which provides funding at a large scale for sustainable land management practices. Currently the Sustainable Farming Incentive includes actions for soil management, and we will be including more actions from 2023. Countryside Stewardship already pays for actions which will benefit fens. We are evolving Countryside Stewardship to make it more accessible, improving targeting and including additional actions. We will be publishing more detail shortly on the actions we expect to pay for in the future, including managing, restoring and creating wetland habitat such as fens, and actions to improve water quality. The Water Industry National Environment Programme will also contribute to the future of fens.